Stickers and Tans
by bearhead
Summary: An impromptu sticker war has some unintended consequences. A nice dose of fluffy Caryl for Operation Levity. Caryl On!


It was a designated "work day." Since the weather had gotten warmer the council had decided that a nice outdoor eating area and kitchen would be a great way for the prison residents to escape the dull gloom of the tiny indoor kitchen and the hard metal chairs whose cold surfaces bit into your skin, making it impossible to find a comfortable sitting position.

A Woodburian named Dan, a pre-apocalypse architect, volunteered to design the structure, and after a full day of sketching blueprints, he finally had a list of supplies needed, down to the exact number of nails.

It took the crew three runs to find supplies they needed, making sure to get plenty of extras in case of mistakes, before the group decided they were ready to build.

Every was up with the sun on construction day, eating a breakfast of standard oatmeal with a special treat of honey and canned fruit the boys had found on a run.

Everyone capable was assigned a job, even the kids were on water duty, making sure everyone was hydrated because the rising sun promised to make the day a scorcher.

By the time the base of the structure was up, everyone was ready for a break. While the adults discussed the next part of the project in the shade of the guard tower, Beth led the group of children to a small picnic table where she had crayons, paper and stickers set out for them.

All it took was Mika putting a butterfly sticker right in the middle of Luke's forehead for a full on sticker war to begin.

The squeals of laughing children cut through the adults' meeting, drawing their attention away from the blueprints and to the horde of kids barreling towards them.

Beth, in a stroke of genius, had convinced the children to call a truce amongst themselves so that they could join forces against the bigger enemies. She armed them each with a sheet of stickers and sent them running towards the group huddled under the guard tower.

It took Daryl about two seconds of watching the approaching children before he decided the best course of action was to flee. Leaving his friends to fend for themselves he flew up the ladder of the tower, in a desperate search for safety.

He almost felt guilty for making Carol jump a mile high as he slammed open the trap door and yanked himself into the guard tower. Only once he was safely inside and the door firmly shut did he meet her eye with a guilty gaze as he surreptitiously tried to sit on the trap door without her realizing what he was doing.

"Kids 'ave gone crazy" he said in response to her raised eyebrow.

"From the looks of it, you're the one going crazy." She responded, noting the purposeful placement of his butt. "What exactly are they doing, that's crazy enough to make the wild Daryl Dixon flee?"

"Dunno, didn't stick 'round long nuf to find out. Jus saw em running and I reacted." Daryl answered, thumb flying to his mouth as he realized how stupid he probably looked.

Carol shook her head with a chuckle. "Well let's see what they're up to then shall we?" she said, turning and walking to the guard rail.

She let out a loud laugh as she took in the scene below her, watching as a group of kids ganged up on rick, tackling him to the ground and sticking as many of their stickers to him as they could while he rolled in the dirt, trying to escape.

Carol didn't look up as she felt Daryl finally approach, after deciding that none of the children had attempted to pursue him. Her smile grew wider as he leaned over the rail next to her, purposefully pushing his arm up against hers as they rested on the bar.

He had grown increasingly bolder over the past few weeks at the prison, the period of extended peace seemed to be doing him good, as he took on more responsibility but never seemed too stressed.

She rested her temple against his shoulder momentarily as they looked down at the rampant children, relishing in his scent and the fact that didn't even flinch at her sudden touch.

"You sure you don't want to join in?" she asked him, moving her head from his shoulder so she could look him in the eye with a smile.

He gave her a grunt of amusement, mouth flicking up at the corner.

"Pretty fucking sure. But you're free to join em if'n you want" he responded, noticing the way her gaze lingered on the activity below them.

"You know, I think I'll do that…..take my watch for a couple minutes?" she asked, her smile full of excitement.

Daryl knew he could never say no to that face, giving her a sound of agreement he turned his gaze back to the commotion, the sounds of her quickly leaving the tower ringing in his ears.

It didn't take long for Carol to appear in the middle of the fray, immediately snatching a forgotten sheet of stickers from the ground and slapping them on passing children.

Daryl let out a chuckle as he watched, loving the way her carefree smile lit up her face.

The impromptu war died out after a few minutes, as everyone began to run out of ammo. As the last couple stickers were placed Carol emerged through the trap door, her cheeks flushed pleasant pink from her spurt of fun.

"Thanks for watching for me Pookie!" Carol said as she approached Daryl, a slightly mischievous smile on her face.

She laid her hand on his shoulder as she stood next to him, secretly placing the rather large heart shaped sticker she had in her palm onto his shoulder blade.

Daryl face flushed at the combination of her silly new pet name for him and the feel of her warm palm on his shoulder.

"Ain't nothin' "he replied, shaking his hair in front of his eyes. He peered up at her from under his bangs, noting that she was looking slightly suspicious. "Reckon it's safe for me to go down there?" he asked rather warily.

"Yup!" Carol replied cheekily, "the last sticker has been placed, so you're safe!"

Daryl nodded slowly, not missing the glint in her eye.

"If you say so…."

The hunter took a couple steps backwards, not yet willing to turn his back on Carol's suspicious figure. Figuring he was a safe distance away he spun around and stalked over to the trap door, lowering himself down the ladder with one last lingering look at Carol's form watching the horizon from the edge of the tower.

* * *

The sun beat down violently on the people working in the yard. A lucky few were able to escape its rays, choosing to work on building tables and a kitchen underneath the shade of the partially completed structure.

Daryl grunted as he slammed his hammer down into a nail, securing the plywood to the support beams. The sun was shining relentlessly down on his back, his exposed neck and shoulders taking the brunt of its impact. He tossed his gaze to Rick noting that his pale skin was beginning to turn an alarming shade of red. He thanked whatever power out there that that's the one part of the redneck name he didn't live up to. His skin was always quick to take on a tan rather than burn to a crisp.

He sighed as he wiped the excessive amount of sweat off his forehead, watching Tyreese nail down the final piece of plywood. All they needed to do now was nail down a layer of waterproof covering and a layer of tar paper, cover the seams with tar and they would be done. He didn't know how things were going down below, but because only a couple people were able to be on the roof at a time he figured their work was going much faster.

He shook his sweaty hair out of his eyes and started unrolling the paper across the plywood, eager to finish this up and get out of the sun.

* * *

This was one of the few times in his life where Daryl desperately wanted a shower. He was covered in sweat, melted tar, and dirt making him sticky and miserable. He sighed in relief as he took in the empty shower room. He had sat around, stinky and irritable for over an hour in an effort to avoid showering at the same time as the rest of the sweaty work crew.

He wasted no time in stripping down and stepping under the cool water, relishing in its refreshing feel. He grabbed a bar of soap and starting sudsing up, pausing when he felt something stuck to his shoulder. His tight muscles made it difficult to reach, but he was finally able to peel it off to revel a large pink heart shaped sticker.

"Fucking Carol" he growled finally connecting her suspicious attitude and random shoulder touch to the offending item. He threw it on the floor so he could finish his shower, mentally planning the words he was going to say to her next time he saw her.

* * *

Daryl emerged from the shower room damp and clean just in time for dinner. The group was excited to use their brand new outside eating area and everyone was chatting animatedly as he emerged from the cell block.

His eyes immediately searched out Carol, his lingering anger diminishing slightly as he took her in. She smiled at him as he approached before turning back to her cooking, instructing Patrick in how to properly tell when the meat was done.

"I found your fucking sticker, woman" he said in lieu of a greeting.

Carol's smile widened though her attention remained purposefully focused on her cooking.

"Oh?" she replied, deciding to play it calm.

"Yeah, and I don't much appreciate it. I ain't wanting the new people around here to get the impression tha I'm a pink heart kind of guy." He said, voice a low growl.

Carol laughed at that turning towards him and taking a step in.

"Oh I wouldn't worry about that Pookie, you're obviously very menacing" she said placing one hand on his cheek and quickly kissing the corner of his pouting mouth.

Daryl's arms remained crossed over his chest as his face turned bright red, ducking his head and glancing up at her shyly.

She gave him a cheeky grin as she took in his blush, taking a step back and turning back to her food, saying her hips a bit for his entertainment.

* * *

Daryl nearly choked on his spit as his gaze zeroed in on her swinging hips, she was doing this to him on purpose, but he couldn't bring himself to hate her for it.

He was brought out of his daze by Glenn's cackling laughter resonating loudly from directly behind him.

"Hey Daryl! Nice tan man!" he said much louder than necessary, drawing the attention of everyone around them.

Daryl looked at his skin in confusion. He was definitely noticeably darker after today's construction work, and he was sure his shirt left some nice tan lines. But the one he was wearing now was practically the same and there was no way they lines were that visible.

"Uh….thanks?" he mumbled, his confusion increasing as he saw Glenn completely doubled over in laughter.

Daryl turned fully to face the gasping Asian, but Carols gasp from behind him had him spinning back around. Carol was staring at him, hands clamped over her mouth, her eyes gazed openly at him, somehow managing to sparkle in amusement and look slightly guilty at the same time.

"Carol…" he growled threateningly, leveling her with a glare. "What the fuck is so funny"

Carol just shook her head in reply, her eyes widening with every twist of her head.

"Woman you better tell me what the hell is going on right fucking now." He snarled, voice low and dangerous.

Carol moved her hands from her mouth just enough to let out a muffled "Don't hate me" she whispered, her gaze unwavering.

Daryl let out a frustrated sigh.

"I promise I won't hate you, jus tell me what the fuck is going on" he bargained, taking a slight step closer to her.

"Remember that sticker I put on your shoulder" she started cautiously, hesitantly meeting his eye.

Daryl nodded impatiently, frustrated by her uncertainty.

"Well…..you kind of got a very noticeable heart shaped tan from it..…"

He shook his head violently.

" 'xcuse me?"

"You have a heart shaped tan….where the sticker was left a pale spot…..and it's shaped like a perfect heart…"

"Yer fucking kidding me" Daryl said slowly, desperately searching Carol's face for a hint of a joke.

She shook her head rapidly, hands returning to her mouth.

"You promised not to hate me"

Daryl huffed loudly, wishing there was something nearby he could smash out of frustration. He chose instead to whip around and stalk back into the cell block, heading straight to the bathroom.

One glance in the mirror confirmed Carol's confession, growling at the heart shaped section of skin that seemed to glow white surrounded by his significantly tanner skin. He places his forearms on the sink below him, resting his forehead against them and letting out a long sigh.

Despite it being entirely Carol's fault, Daryl knew he couldn't be mad at her for long, but that wouldn't stop him from trying to prolong how much time it took for everyone else in the group to see his new "tattoo".

Daryl decided the best way to hide in shame was to retreat to the cell he and Carol shared. He crashed heavily onto his bunk, ignoring the growl his stomach let out, knowing that Carol would eventually bring him a plate.

* * *

He woke up from his slight doze to find Carol entering the cell, plate in one hand, cup in the other. She met his eye cautiously, giving him a shy smile in an attempt to gauge his mood.

"Hey" Daryl grunted sitting up quickly and scooting to one end of the bed so she could sit next to him.

"Hey" she replied softly taking the seat beside him and passing him his meal.

Daryl started in on his food, knowing she would need a second to form the apology he knew was coming.

"Daryl, I'm so sorry about the sticker, I had no idea its affect would be so….permanent." she said, flicking her big blue eyes to his.

He softened his glare as they made eye contact.

"S'okay" he said reluctantly, "I promised I wouldn't hate you." He nudged her shoulder with his giving her a tiny smile.

She returned it readily, resting her head on his broad shoulder.

"I appreciate that."

Daryl continued to eat in silence for a few minutes, content in her company.

"For what it's worth," Carol began suddenly "I think it makes you look pretty badass" she said, twisting her head to press her lips against his new mark.

Daryl dropped his head with a chuckle, turning to bring his face close to hers.

"Damn straight" he whispered leaning into her slowly and pressing his lips against hers.

He felt her smile into the kiss and he felt a rush of pride shoot through him. Their relationship was new and he relished in the freedom to kiss Carol whenever he wanted.

"You know…" he began, deciding to act upon the surge of confidence that shot through him, "if ya wanted to publically display your love fer me, ya could have found a better way of going 'bout it" he drawled, smirking at the surprised expression she took on at his comment.

He leaned in and kissed her again, forcing her backwards onto his bed. Carol pulled away slightly when her head hid the mattress.

"I'll make sure to try something different tomorrow then." She said with a smirk, snaking a hand up to latch onto his collar and pull his mouth back down to hers.

Daryl smiled as Carol kissed him; the feel of her lips on his making him forget the humiliation he was sure to face for his tan tomorrow.

And as his tongue wound with hers and she wrapped her arms snugly around his neck, Daryl decided that it was all worth it if he could come back to this every night.

* * *

**AN: My sisters and I did this with stickers last summer, two hours laying in the sun with star stickers on my back and I had a gnarly temporary tattoo for the next few months. **

**Hope you enjoyed! Caryl on!**

**~bearhead**


End file.
